None better on the defensive end
The Chronicle is reviewing the season of each Warriors player after the team’s championship run.
A brash, emotional leader, Draymond Green is at his best when playing the villain.
But this past season, after a tumultuous summer in which he was benched during the Olympics, arrested on assault charges, and embarrassed by a picture of his most private part he accidentally sent to his Snapchat followers, Green did a better job reining in his bravado without limiting his physicality.
After two seasons finishing second to San Antonio’s Kawhi Leonard in Defensive Player of the Year voting, Green won the award for the first time Monday night — the first Warrior to do so.
He made five defensive plays in the last minute of one-possession games that helped seal victories. In a Feb. 10 win at Memphis, Green posted the first triple-double in NBA history without double-digit points. He was the first player since Dwyane Wade in 2008-09 to record at least 150 steals and 100 blocks in a season. When Green was on the floor, Golden State allowed six fewer points per 100 possessions than when he sat.
Green’s offensive production understandably dipped with Kevin Durant in the fold, but he remained an elite facilitator and hit plenty of important shots in the playoffs. His 13.1 points per game in the postseason were 2.9 more than he averaged in the regular season.
Ultimately, he exorcised the memory of his Game 5 suspension in the 2016 Finals. Green’s 10 points, 12 rebounds, five assists and two steals helped power the Warriors to a championship-clinching Game 5 win June 12 over the Cavaliers.
Offseason outlook: Green is one of only five Golden State players who won’t be free agents this summer. He will try to avoid the negative press that plagued him a year ago.